Everything You Need To Know About Literary Weatherlore: The Complete Guide on Weather in Writing

Watch my deep dive of Weatherlore on YouTube. This video covers more topics on Weatherlore, from the don'ts of weather writing to how Weatherlore works in movies.

Weather has a purpose in writing, and I’m not talking about having filler conversations for your characters. I’m talking about Weatherlore.

Weatherlore is how it sounds: lore created by weather. But what exactly does that mean? Well, buckle up because we are going to dive deep into everything that is Weatherlore, from literary criticism to writing techniques.

The Definition of Weatherlore

The term Weather Lore derives from folklore of weather communications being passed down through speech and writing. The origin of this Weather Lore comes from studying the sky for navigation, such as astrology.

In modern days, Weather Lore is used in meteorology for forecasting, where the lore is predicting weather and looking at the sky for signs. But what does that have to do with writing?

Literary Weatherlore is slightly different, but has the same basis. My definition of Weatherlore is one word, instead of two, as its purpose is more than forecasting, navigation, and communication. Yes, writing is all three of those things, but my Weatherlore goes beyond that.

Literary Weatherlore

Weatherlore is a tool utilized by writers to convey a deeper meaning through the use of weather imagery. Weather in literature is more than just scenery details as weather descriptions communicate to readers symbolism, metaphor, characterization, themes, and plot progression.

Symbolism: Weather elements (such as the sun, moon, rain, clouds) can symbolize anyone and anything in literature. A common and cliché use of this is rain representing sadness.

Metaphor: How weather acts within a story or poem can compare to an action or event (either real or fictional). For example, if two characters are fighting in a story, overlapping and entangled clouds could metaphorically represent the character dynamic.

Characterization: Every aspect of a character can be represented through how the weather is described, from how a character is feeling during a given scene to what they think or what their desires are. The character’s perspective can be utilized with characterization Weatherlore, as how a singular character views the sky shows readers if they have a negative or positive mindset. Such as, if the character were depressed they may focus on the gray color in the clouds rather than the bright sunbeams behind the clouds.

Weather imagery can not only show the inner thoughts of the character but it can also enhance the emotional tension of a character. For example, if a character is depressed the scene may be described as a dark, moonless night. Using weather for characterization shows the reader the emotion of the character while simultaneously setting up the tone for the scene.

Themes: All novels have a theme or a greater purpose, such as The Handmaid’s Tale conducting commentary on womens’ rights and politics. In some books, the theme is obvious but in others it’s subtle and up to the reader interpret it. Weatherlore can aid in the reader’s interpretation of the novel’s theme as weather imagery leaves breadcrumbs to the larger idea of the novel.

Plot Progression: Not only can weather reflect a character, but it can also reflect story actions and plot points. Weatherlore works as a foreshadowing tool—having the sky hint at what will come later—or it can enhance a present action with weather imagery echoing what is happening in the scene.

For foreshadowing Weatherlore, if a major event in the story is a fire, a few scenes earlier a sunset could be described as “the sky on fire.” Looking at the image above, we could open a scene with, "The sunset was a hot red—the sky on fire with harsh and dark clouds its smoke." This description is a subtle use of foreshadowing, which means it won’t be too on-the-nose for the reader but enough is there for the reader to look back and make a realization later.

To enhance the foreshadowing, a writer could reuse the weather imagery language from earlier to emphasize the current plot point. Referring to the description in the previous paragraph, during the plot event of a fire, the scene could be described as, “The fire’s smoke was thick and dark, like rain clouds smothering light.” This line creates a juxtaposition with the foreshadowing Weatherlore, as the opening image was clouds as smoke and the closing image was smoke as clouds.

However, writers should use caution when using foreshadowing Weatherlore and juxtaposition or repetition Weatherlore (as shown above). If the Weatherlore is done too much or too frequently, it’s impact will be essentially watered down and the weather imagery will no longer excite the reader. 

Weatherlore only works when used occasionally. When reusing weather language, there should be an ample amount of time between the two uses. If they are back-to-back, readers will not recognize the Weatherlore as imagery emphasis and instead they will read it as redundancy.

With that in mind, one piece of Weatherlore in writing could have multiple purpose. The elements of writing (characterization, themes, etc.) that are represented through weather go hand-in-hand with each other. For example, weather imagery can simultaneously be characterization enhancement and a weather metaphor to foreshadow a plot point.

However, Weatherlore is not limited to the five categories I listed above. Weather can be used in endless ways to enhance storytelling and literature.

What makes the writing Weatherlore is the meaning behind the weather. The weather isn’t just the sun in the sky or fluffy white clouds; the weather is representing a character, setting up the emotional tone, revealing plot actions, and many other things.

Weather in writing is:

• poetic language to progress the story

• a placeholder to represent something greater

• foreshadowing what’s to come

• reflecting characters’ emotions

• showing what the writer cannot say bluntly

And so much more. The list of what weather can do in writing can go on forever.

No matter how Weatherlore is utilized or what purpose it has, weather imagery leaves clues behind for readers to find. Weather in literature is a secret puzzle for the reader to decode.

The History of Literary Weatherlore

Weatherlore is not a common term used in the literary community. In fact, it is essentially unknown because I discovered it. 

Weather writing is discussed, however, the official term of Weatherlore with its definition as both a literary criticism and writing technique are not discussed as it was developed from my studies of literature and my practice of weather writing. Hopefully, this article will help spread awareness of literary Weatherlore because the power of it should not be in the shadows.

Although Weatherlore is not widely officially recognized as a method of creative writing, that does not devalue the quality of it. In actuality, writers use Weatherlore without realizing it. Describing the sun in the sky is not a simple description when you analyze what the sun represents and why the sun is acting the way it is during a given scene. 

Now, the writer may not have intended a deeper meaning, but that’s the beauty of Weatherlore. Weatherlore is just as much for the reader as it is for the writer. As readers, we can interpret and analyze weather imagery to gain a new perspective on literature, whether or not the writer intended for the weather to be analyzed. In some cases, writers don’t truly realize what the weather they wrote means for their story or poem.

The Discovery of Weatherlore

Since I am claiming to have founded Weatherlore, you are probably wondering where it all came from. How did I discover it and why am I an expert on weather writing?

It all started in 2019 while I was pursuing a Bachelors in English. I was tasked to read Louise Erdrich’s The Round House and conduct a thorough literary analysis of the book. The topic of the analysis was of my choosing and I chose to dissect Erdrich’s use of weather.

Before reading The Round House, I was not aware of the impact weather could have in writing. But as the story developed, the weather descriptions were hard to ignore. In the grand scheme of things, the weather moments in this book are small and quickly fleeting, which only makes the Weatherlore stronger.

There is power in simplicity and Erdrich proves that. In one sentence, she changes the entire course of the book when she writes, “The sun fell onto the kitchen floor in golden pools, but it was an ominous radiance, like the piercing light behind a western cloud” (23). Before this moment, the protagonist’s mother is shown through the perspective of light (lack of sunlight in her room, shutting out the sun, sleeping in shadows, etc.). The emphasis of light when referring to the mother’s depression leads the readers to associate the sun with the mother for the rest of the book. 

With that context, the readers can recognize that the sun falling onto the floor in pools represents where we are within the plot, which is the Inciting Incident. Within the 3-Act Structure, the Inciting Incident is the at the end of Act I and the beginning of Act II where the protagonist gets thrusted onto their journey and starts their adventure. For Joe, the protagonist, their Inciting Incident is realizing that he has to take justice into his own hands to save his mother. The Inciting Incident here is reflected through the sun as the “golden pools” showcase the epiphany Joe had about his mother.

The Weatherlore also goes further within this sentence as the “...piercing light behind a western cloud” refers to the mother being smothered. Is reflects her hiding away in her bedroom (that the readers were shown earlier), but it also shows why she is hiding away when you consider the meaning of the cloud. In the story of The Round House, the protagonist’s mother (who is a tribal woman) was attacked by a man of western culture. It is not a coincidence that the cloud covering the light is described as a western cloud. Which means, this small sentence emphasizes the violence done against the mother while also establishing how the weather works for the rest of the book (the sun is the mother and the clouds are the attacker).

Reading the book for the first time, this was the moment when I first recognized that weather was playing a larger role. From there, I paid closer attention to the weather imagery. Once you start looking at the weather in writing, the Weatherlore is obvious.

The sun and clouds are not the only weather imagery elements used to create the Weatherlore in this book. The rain also has a major role, especially since rain isn’t present until the climax of the story.

When the protagonist goes head-to-head with the antagonist, the rain is very active in the scene. The scene starts with the air smelling of rain (281) when the protagonist is still debating if he should kill his mother’s attacker. The first drop of rain does not fall until the gun is fired, and when the protagonist is fleeing from the crime scene and fears being caught by the police, the rain is described as, “The rain was coming down like sixty now” (286). Throughout the climax, the rain’s presence grows, with the largest presence after the antagonist is killed. The rain in this scene reflects the antagonist being brought to justice and show reveals to readers that the rain symbolizes justice.

Having the context of how the Weatherlore rain functions, the ending of the book is foreshadowed with rain imagery. After the climax, the rain still present as Erdrich writes, “The rain had completely dried off except for some random dark patches . . . ” (288). The image of the rain not drying shows readers that there is more justice to come. With the ending of the book being a car crash that takes the life of a character, by looking at the Weatherlore it is clear that the rain not drying foreshadows to their death and them dying was the universe bringing that person to justice.

Now this interpretation of The Round House is only a literary theory, which means what I am analyzing may not be what the author intended. But that does take away the value of Weatherlore and how impact Erdrich’s use of weather imagery is.

I understand this book from the inside-out because I have looked closely at the weather imagery. I would not have been able to see foreshadowing and symbolism if it wasn’t if I did not pay attention to the weather.

The reason why The Round House is a powerhouse in Weatherlore is because the weather has multiple purposes within the story.

Characterization

• The protagonist’s mother is the sun

• The attacker/antagonist is the clouds

Theme

• The rain is justice (criminal, tribal, and moral justice)

Plot Progression

• Weather used for characterization and novel themes simultaneously foreshadow major plot events, such as the sun shining in the iris of a doll’s eyes foreshadows a discovery about the mother or leftover puddles from a rainstorm foreshadows a character’s death.

And that is why The Round House is one of my all-time favorite books. Erdrich’s use of weather imagery is aspiring and she as an author is the role model for Weatherlore. Thanks to Erdrich, I am the writer I am today and I am now sharing the insights I learned from Erdrich to share my knowledge of Weatherlore.

The Two Sides of Weatherlore: Criticism and Technique

Weatherlore is both a literary criticism and writing technique. This means that Weatherlore is influential for both readers and writers. 

As readers, Weatherlore can be used as a literary criticism in order to conduct theories and analysis based on the weather usage in literature. As writers, we can use Weatherlore as a technique to strengthen the story.

Weatherlore as a Literary Criticism

Literary criticism (or literary theory) is an established method to analyze and critically think about literature. In literary criticism, there are a set of rules for how to conduct a theory or how to read a piece of text. 

For example, in New Historicism the rule is you have to read a piece of literature through the perspective of a historical text. The discoveries you make through this historical perspective reading is where your New Historicism analysis comes from.

That is one type of literary criticism. Others include Reader Response, Cultural Studies, Queer Theory, Structuralism, and Ecocriticism.

Ecocriticism, sometimes referred to as Green Studies, analyzes the setting of literature. Ecocritical theories focus solely on the environment, nature, and place of the text to conduct an analysis.

Weatherlore falls underneath the literary theory umbrella of Ecocriticism because weather can be categorized as environment. Although Weatherlore is a part of Ecocriticism, Weatherlore is its own literary criticism because Weatherlore theories are limited to only discussing the weather. 

Ecocriticism can critique other aspects of the setting such as flowers, grass, and leaves. Therefore, all Weatherlore theories could be an Ecocriticial theory but not all Ecocritical theories can be Weatherlore. Ecocriticism is a literary criticism based in nature, where Weatherlore is a literary criticism that only analyzes the sky.

Weatherlore as a Writing Technique

We already broke down what Weatherlore does for literature (symbolism, metaphor, characterization, etc.), so seeing how it can be a writing technique should be easy. Using Weatherlore in your writing will enhance the characters, plot, emotional engagement, and more.

Most writers recognize weather as scenery description to set-up the environment of the story. Yes, that is true but weather is not just the place of the story. Weather, as we have discussed, can be the feeling of the story or it can represent a greater purpose.

Weatherlore is a writing technique to control your readers line of thinking, helping them interpret your story the way you want them to. It’s a technique to avoid the clichés writers sometimes do when adding emotion. By showing weather that symbolizes the scene’s emotion, readers can easily infer what the character is feeling.

And, it’s a technique to show your readers every aspect of your story without being on the nose. Weather imagery is written to be interpreted by the reader. As a Weatherlore writer, you can leave breadcrumbs for your reader but you don’t spoon feed it to them.

To give you an example of how you can write with Weatherlore, let’s take a look at an opening paragraph for a story.

The moon’s glow had faint edges, blurred to almost perfection. But she couldn’t tell if the moon’s blur was from the clouds or her tears. Maybe her glasses were stained a little too much, to where the sky looked gray. Or maybe the sky was always murky and she just now noticed.

This paragraph is only four sentences, which isn’t much of a story, but reading this little tells us so much about the story and character because of the weather. It’s not a full scene, but it’s enough to understand the tone, emotion, and stakes. We understand how the character is feeling even though we haven’t met her yet. We don’t know her and we weren’t told who she is, but we understand her because of how the moon is described in comparison to her. Her reacting to the moon tells us everything we need to know to feel her emotions and understand her story.

The Weatherlore here is interesting because it’s a back-and-forth between the character and weather to start the story. It’s the character reacting to the weather and adding their perspective of how the weather is seen that creates the lore for the Weatherlore.

The Weatherlore in this paragraph also sets up the plot. The back-and-forth between the character and weather symbolizes the internal conflict the character feels and hints at where the story will go.

As you can see, simple descriptions of weather can go a long way for your characters and plot. The meaning of your story is threaded through the use of weather in your writing. Weather is not filler imagery to get from A to B; it is the foundation for A through Z. 

Next time you’re unsure how to communicate the emotion in a scene, try Weatherlore.

Weatherlore as a Brainstorming Technique

Now that you’ve seen first-hand how Weatherlore can enhance writing, let’s talk about how you can take advantage of it during the early stages of the writing process.

Weatherlore can spark inspiration and influence the storycrafting. Where do stories come from? Sometimes, the answer is weather.

If you are blocked or looking for a new story to write, I encourage you to go outside and study the sky. Start writing down what you see and describe in detail what the sky is doing at that moment. Paint a picture of the sky with words, and from there you may see a story blossom. Or, at least, you got an idea to play around with.

Almost all of my stories start this way, where I find sunbeams striking through thick clouds and instantly see a story there. Why was the sun hiding and why is it now reaching out? I play around with those questions and find the answers while I write. My stories are what they are because my writing is inspired by weather.

Why Write with Weatherlore?

By now you should be able to recognize the impact Weatherlore has for both writers and readers, and I would hope you are inspired to try writing with Weatherlore yourself.

All of my writing focuses on Weatherlore because I believe I write at my best when I am influenced by weather. My storycrafting looks closely at the emotion of the sky to build my characters or find my story. This can be seen in my book Under Water: Stories, where several stories within this fiction collection rely on weather images and descriptions to progress the story or add emotional tension.

If you’re anything like me, you are passionate about all the possibilities Weatherlore has in creative writing. And if you’re not, I challenge you to at least try writing with Weatherlore because you may be surprised what you can do with weather.

Want to get more Weatherlore knowledge? Watch “Everything About Weatherlore” on YouTube. This video includes a Weatherlore analysis of the movie Mulan.